Beijing to restrict air space during Sept 3 WW2 military parade

PHOTO: AFP

SHANGHAI - China will impose temporary air traffic controls on Beijing when it holds a military parade on Sept. 3 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of World War Two, the official Xinhua news agency reported on Saturday, citing the aviation regulator.

The city's main airport, Beijing Capital International Airport, and the smaller Nanyuan Airport will be shut between 0930-1230 Beijing that day, according to the Air Traffic Management Bureau of the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

Many airlines have already cancelled both outbound and inbound flights during that time frame, the authority said.

Aerial activity involving lightweight helicopters, gliders, hot air balloons and aerostats will also be banned from Aug. 22 to Sept. 4.

The military parade is due to top off a series of events that China has planned for the anniversary, which Chinese state media call the "victory of the Chinese People's War Against Japanese Aggression".